Although their initial run was relatively short in nature, Rage Against the Machine is considered by critics and fans alike to be
one of themost influential rock bands of the past twenty years. The politically charged lyrics of vocalist Zack de la Rocha
combined with themagician's bag of riffs and effects courtesy of guitarist Tom Morello were the essential one-two punch that
led to RATM's ascension to thetop of the charts in the 1990s and early 2000s. Along with the solid rhythmsectionofbassistTim
Commerford and drummer Brad Wilk,RATM created a definitive sound, effectively mixing rap and ...read more

Although their initial run was relatively short in nature, Rage Against the Machine is considered by critics and fans alike to be
one of themost influential rock bands of the past twenty years. The politically charged lyrics of vocalist Zack de la Rocha
combined with themagician's bag of riffs and effects courtesy of guitarist Tom Morello were the essential one-two punch that
led to RATM's ascension to thetop of the charts in the 1990s and early 2000s. Along with the solid rhythmsectionofbassistTim
Commerford and drummer Brad Wilk,RATM created a definitive sound, effectively mixing rap and hardrocklikefew, if any,other
rock bands had ever done before.

Their self-titled first album, released in 1992, shook up the music industry and listeners alike behind such revolutionary singles
as "Killing inthe Name", "Bullet in the Head", and "Bombtrack", eventually going triple
platinum.Followingtheirbreakthroughsuccess, the bandextensively toured, which was highlighted by their infamous
Lollapalooza stint inwhichtheband stoodnaked for several minutes to protestcensorship. Nearly half a decade later, in 1996,
the band returnedwith"EvilEmpire", ahip-hop and rhythmic oriented effort which featuredthe alternative radio staple "Bulls on
Parade",completewithquasi-DJscratching soloing, as well as "Down Rodeo". RATM continued to fightover its creative direction
andneglectedtotourfollowing the release of the record, due to the conflict existing between Zach and the rest ofthe band.
Thebandsoldieredonand in 1999 released their third LP "The Battle of Los Angeles". The album eventually garnered Rage a
Grammy win for"Guerilla Radio", and the two other main singles "Testify" and "Sleep Now in The Fire" kept the album on the
topofthecharts,leadingto double platinum sales. The following year, RATM released "Renegades", a cover album featuring
manyofthebandmembers'influences, but shortly after the release Zach De La Rocha announced his departure from
theband,citingcreativedifferences,leaving the instrumental trio without a singer.

In 2001, the remaining members (Tom, Brad, Tim) hooked up with former Soundgarden vocalist ChrisCornell and formed
Audioslave, which released three successful albums in the 2000s, while De La Rocha attempted to record asoloalbumwithpoor
results. Following Cornell's departure from Audioslave in 2007, RATM reunited and has played several key shows at major
venues such as Coachella and Lollapalooza over the past few years, leaving fans salivating for some new material or a full
touring schedule. In July 2011, they will be the featured artist at the "L.A. Rising" festival, which will be the band's only
scheduled performance of the calendar year. Regardless of what happens in their future, Rage Against the Machine will remain
as one of the most original and essential bands of hard rock...and if they were angry during the Clinton administration,imagine
what they could have done with Bush had they stuck around for the ride...